---
title: "Intel completes RAMP-C defense chip program on 18A process"
url: https://www.parallelquant.com/posts/intel-completes-ramp-c-defense-chip-program-on-18a-process-dc0bdf
source_name: "Tom's Hardware"
source_url: https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/intel-closes-out-the-defense-program-that-paid-nvidia-and-others-to-run-test-chips-on-18a
published: 2026-07-29T09:30:00.000Z
topics: ["chips", "policy"]
publisher: "Parallel Quant"
---

# Intel completes RAMP-C defense chip program on 18A process

*2026-07-29 · Source: [Tom's Hardware](https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/intel-closes-out-the-defense-program-that-paid-nvidia-and-others-to-run-test-chips-on-18a)*

Intel Foundry announced completion of RAMP-C, a US Department of Defense program launched in 2021 that paid Nvidia and other companies to run test chips on Intel's 18A process, aimed at establishing a secure domestic path for leading-edge chip manufacturing.

**Why it matters:** This is a milestone in the US push to reduce reliance on Taiwan for advanced chip manufacturing, with direct relevance to AI hardware given Nvidia's role as a test partner. It fits a broader pattern of AI compute being treated as a national security asset, alongside moves like restricting Chinese equipment in military-adjacent data centers.

**Topics:** chips, policy

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Read the original: https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/intel-closes-out-the-defense-program-that-paid-nvidia-and-others-to-run-test-chips-on-18a
Canonical: https://www.parallelquant.com/posts/intel-completes-ramp-c-defense-chip-program-on-18a-process-dc0bdf
Published by Parallel Quant — https://www.parallelquant.com